Spencer waved away the phone Samuel held out. ‘Not now,’ he mouthed, needing painkillers for his thumping head, not hearing whatever his sister had to say. ‘I have a festival that needs me. I helped build this, and I’m not leaving because ofher.’
‘I really think you just need some time to yourself, Spence.’
‘You know what, Sam, you’re right, because I was doing just fine all by myself for years before she came along with her lies.’
Samuel flapped out an arm. ‘Where you going?’
Spencer pointed forward. ‘To do my job.’
‘I’ll speak to Lottie. Not sure what to tell her though.’
‘Tell her I’m fine.’ Spencer marched off, wishing he could fall face first into a tub of alcohol and drown his sorrows.
How could you?
Just for a moment, Spencer had no idea if he was still breathing. Numbness took hold, then a shiver ran the full length of his spine. He didn’t know what to do.
‘Spencer,’ called Leo, suddenly at his side with Jax and Ryan. ‘The donkeys are here from the rescue centre. Come on, let’s go see them together.’ The cheerfulness in his voice brought Spencer back to the land of the living.
The three lads dragging him across the park helped ease his racing heart. He couldn’t be sure of anything much except he was needed by the Sunshine Superheroes. He had a job to do, a life to live, and Beth and Archie were just a dream that never came true for people like him.
Chapter 32
Beth
Racing back to her own home, Beth’s adrenaline flushed through angrily from Spencer’s unexpected announcement. She wasn’t supposed to have stress in her life. Peace was needed in order to help heal, but stress ruled, making itself known. Her heart pounded and she couldn’t think straight. Rage was the only thing working, using all the energy she had left to make it to the other side of her front door. Sweat built and air was limited as her stomach churned over and over.
Port Berry no longer existed. Nothing did. Just the palpitations, the hot flushes, and the never-ending agitation.
How Beth made it home so fast was beyond her. She parked the pram in the living room and dashed to get a glass of water from the kitchen tap. No sooner had the water touched her lips than a shiver removed the heat, and she started to calm her breaths, not wanting to feel so tightly wound, as it was no good for her to have high anxiety levels.
There were techniques she had learned, and now was the time to bring them out of her tool bag. The natural art of sedation.
‘Come on,’ she mumbled again and again, hoping her muscle memory would work.
Archie wasn’t making any noises, which was helpful, as it was best he slept through her agitated state, as even though she was sure he wouldn’t understand, she didn’t want him to see her with beetroot cheeks, huffing and puffing.
Beth went to the bathroom to splash her face, the cool water waking her fully from the nightmare that had just taken place. What on earth was Spencer thinking? Should she have dashedaway so fast? Perhaps things could have been sorted had they spoken.
With her head dipped, she shook her head at the mess they were now in.
‘Calm,’ she whispered. ‘Calm is key.’
Jan had taught her so much, so she knew if she relaxed first, she could then figure out what to do about the situation.
Beth felt disappointed she had left the park now, but she had to get away, as she was fuming that he wouldn’t speak to her.
She made her way to the sofa, telling herself it would get sorted soon. She just needed to process, and no doubt Spencer would want to talk to her at some point.
‘Argh!’ she growled through gritted teeth.
Why had he taken a DNA test without telling her? She wouldn’t have minded. If the shoe were on the other foot, perhaps she would have taken a test too, but for him to do it behind her back, then not speak to her afterwards, was all a bit much.
She started to settle a touch, but her mind was still filled with questions. She flopped back, covering her face with her hands while taking a long calming breath.
Tiredness hit hard, acting as though it were doing her a favour. It wasn’t rest she needed, it was control of her crumbling life.
There were two options. She could call her cousin and ask to stay with her for a while so she could avoid everyone in Port Berry, which she was sure would be okay with Pearl, or she could call Jan to tell her about the stress hijack she had stopped from taking her down.
